Frank LaRose “Dove Deep Into [His] Bag of Tricks” to Mislead and Overrule Ohioans… Again

September 20, 2023

LaRose Rewrote November Amendment Using “Inaccurate and Inflammatory”Language After Voters Rejected His Efforts to Silence Their Voices

LaRose – Who Is Running for Senate – Supports A National Abortion Ban

Columbus, OH – The “twisted” and “intentionally misleading” language that Frank LaRose wrote to silence Ohioans and make it harder for voters to protect abortion rights will appear on ballots this November.

Since putting himself at the center of the failed August amendment and rewriting the November abortion ballot language, LaRose has been called out by Ohioans for “diving deep into [his] bag of tricks” and using his position as Secretary of State to silence and overrule Ohioans and push his own political ambitions.

Supreme Court Justice Jennifer Brunner: “Simply put, [LaRose] may express his opinion about the amendment when he casts his vote on election day, just like every other Ohioan.”

LaRose has already said that if the November amendment passes, he would again overrule the majority of Ohioans who support protecting reproductive rights by voting for a national abortion ban if elected to the Senate.

“If Frank LaRose cared about respecting the will of Ohioans, he would not try to intentionally mislead them with confusing and inaccurate ballot language, and he wouldn’t promise to impose a national abortion ban voters don’t support,” said ODP spokesperson Reeves Oyster. “Frank LaRose isn’t working for Ohioans and has proved he’ll do whatever it takes to support his own political ambitions.”

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Cincinnati Enquirer: Ohio Supreme Court orders tweak of abortion ballot language, most GOP words will remain

Jessie Balmert

September 19, 2023

The Ohio Supreme Court ordered the Ohio Ballot Board to reword a portion of its ballot language for an abortion rights amendment, but the majority of the GOP-written wording will remain in place.

“We conclude that the term ‘citizens of the State’ is misleading in that it suggests to the average voter that the proposed amendment would restrict the actions of individual citizens instead of the government,” according to the court’s decision.

But the court won’t order the board to change other phrases that the ballot campaign Ohioans United for Reproductive Rights argued were “intentionally misleading.” For example, the proposed constitutional amendment would protect access to miscarriage care, contraception and fertility treatment, but the GOP language focused solely on abortion. Republicans also substituted “unborn child” for “fetus.”

Justice Jennifer Brunner, a Democrat, wrote: “(Republicans on the Ohio Ballot Board) obfuscated the actual language of the proposed state constitutional amendment by substituting their own language and creating out of whole cloth a veil of deceit and bias in their desire to impose their views on Ohio voters about what they think is the substance of the proposed amendment.”

Brunner criticized LaRose and fellow Republican ballot board member Sen. Theresa Gavarone for expressing their opposition to the abortion rights amendment through their ballot board roles: “Simply put, the chair of the board may express his opinion about the amendment when he casts his vote on election day, just like every other Ohioan,” Brunner wrote of LaRose.

NBC News: Ohio Supreme Court rules ‘unborn child’ wording can remain in abortion ballot language

Megan Lebowitz and Inyoung Choi

September 19, 2023

The Ohio Supreme Court handed a partial victory to the state’s GOP-controlled ballot board on Tuesday, ruling that the term “unborn child” can remain in the ballot language for a November vote on whether to enshrine abortion protections in the state’s constitution.

The court sided with the petitioners in a narrower aspect of the ballot board’s contested language, agreeing that the language “citizens of the State” was misleading.

“Issue 1 is clearly and concisely written to protect Ohioans’ right to make our own personal health care decisions about contraception, pregnancy, and abortion, free from government interference,” Lauren Blauvelt said. “The actual amendment language communicates that right clearly and without distortion.”

Ohio’s Republican Secretary of State Frank LaRose, who oversees the ballot board, has publicly opposed the abortion rights amendment that will be put to voters in November.

Cincinnati Enquirer: Political stunts prove LaRose not working for most Ohioans

Veronica Strevel

September 19, 2023

Frank LaRose has made one thing abundantly clear over the past six months: He’s not working for the majority of Ohioans.

First, it was Issue 1 in August. LaRose put himself squarely behind this amendment and became the chief campaigner for an effort designed to benefit special interests and silence Ohioans by essentially killing any possibility of citizen-led ballot initiatives passing in Ohio.

But then − in a slap in the face to all Ohioans, let alone the hundreds of thousands of Ohioans who signed on to that language − LaRose abused his elected office by recently rewriting the language voters will see when they enter the voting booth this November.

LaRose’s language is longer, more confusing, and includes medically inaccurate language. Make no mistake: It’s a brazen attempt by LaRose to silence Ohioans again by making it harder for this amendment to pass, even when public polling shows a majority of Ohioans support the heart of the amendment.

And worst of all, LaRose has already promised to overrule Ohioans if we protect reproductive rights this fall and he is elected to the Senate by voting for a national abortion ban.

LaRose’s actions have made it abundantly clear he’s not working for us. He’s trying to get ahead and help himself and his political career − and he doesn’t care who stands in his way. LaRose will be remembered by his actions this August and November and who he fought for. One thing is clear: It’s not Ohioans.

Cleveland.com: Vote ‘yes’ for Issue 1 on Nov. 7

Angie Charles

September 15, 2023

The conservatives dove deep into their bag of tricks in their attempt to sway votes for an unpopular amendment to the state constitution in August. They failed. They’re going to reach even deeper into that soiled bag to defeat Issue 1, the reproductive rights amendment, in November.

Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose, who chairs the Ohio Ballot Board, created deceitful language for the amendment on the ballot.

Ohio won’t fall for it. The amendment protects the freedom of individuals and families to make their own reproductive health care decisions. It trusts that citizens, not the state, are in the best position to make those decisions.

The extremists on the right have preached about their commitment to individual freedom for decades. Now we find out that they were misleading us.

The Vindicator: Don’t let LaRose silence Ohioans in the US Senate

Bethany Double, Farmdale

September 17, 2023

Secretary of State Frank LaRose does not care about the people of Ohio. He spearheaded the August special election to make it harder to pass the abortion amendment in November — and he failed. Ohioans used their right to vote to share their opinions, but LaRose doesn’t care.

He rewrote the ballot language for the abortion amendment in an attempt to confuse and trick voters. Shame on him. LaRose is using his role as Ohio Secretary of State to push his own agenda, and he will do the same if he is elected to the U.S. Senate.

We cannot forget he has openly voiced his support for a national abortion ban. He does not care what Ohioans want and would override us if he goes to the Senate.

Shame on LaRose for silencing Ohioans. We can’t let him get away with this in November.

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